“You Won’t Be around Next Year…”
Has Rap Music always had a short memory and if so, is it far worst now?
Put away your books. Take out a pen and paper (didn’t you hate hearing that in school?).
Number your paper from one to five. Each question is worth 20 points.
- Who was the hottest producer ten years ago?
- What was the number one rap song that Spring? Summer? Fall? Winter?
- Name five rap songs from 1996.
- What were two popular rap songs the summer of 1986?
and
5. Write an example of what a rap song was like in 1976.
Most of us would fail that pop quiz (unless it was open internet). And while I might fare well on 3–5, I would still get 60% because 2000 to 2010 is a blur to me.
And ten years might be an extreme. Break it down in five year increments. I’m sure there are at LEAST twenty songs and artists that we have collectively forgot about from 2011. Same goes for two years ago. What is that?
Is it because the internet provides us with so many choices and options that we’re always off to the next thing…OR…were those songs and artists throwaway, fly by night sensations…OR…is it something else?
We don’t have all the answers but we will look at this phenomenon and see if it’s something intrinsic to the genre or if it’s a symptom of the times.
What a prophetic line. We’re talking about that signature line of Craig Mack’s that we’re using for the title, of course. Craig Mack, for those of us that can remember, was the flagship act for Puff Daddy’s Bad Boy label and “Flavor in Ya Ear” took the airwaves by storm during the summer of ‘94.
Easy Mo Bee, the producer of the track, said he made the beat in the amount of time it takes to watch a sitcom. It was his ode to the Juice Crew era. Whatever it was, it was popular, unavoidable.
But it would be the last hurrah for Craig Mack. He was a mere Trojan Horse. The real artist that Diddy intended to take over the industry with was an infamous Brooklyn, hardcore MC, Biggie Smalls.
Watching the “Flava in Ya Ear (remix)” video was almost depressing. Craig Mack was like a guest on his own remix, outshone by everyone except Rampage. By the time 1995 rolled around Craig Mack was a footnote…last time there was any press on Mack was about five years ago when people were saying that he joined a cult down in Walterboro, South Carolina. And this is a common story…not the alleged cult membership, but the blowing up and disappearing part.
For the first few years of recorded rap, acts came and went…as far as recorded music went at least. We would get a single from Kurtis Blow, “The Breaks,” and wouldn’t hear from him again for years. Sugar Hill Gang had a few songs…but after “Rapper’s Delight” we weren’t really checking for them. The group that was the most consistent, at least in our eyes, was Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five.
I’d be lying if I said I remember “Super Rappin’.” The first Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five record that I remember hearing was “Freedom.” We may have heard that before we heard the original (song). But after that, it was always a Flash song out: “It’s Nasty,” “The Message,” “Scorpio,” and “New York, New York,” were some of the first rap songs that we loved. We never expected an album nor did we expect another song — they just came.
Even after Run DMC recorded their first self-titled album which was also the first real Rap album, no one expected artists to put out more than a single. We were fine with “It’s Yours” being the only song we knew from TLA Rock. Same goes for Man Parrish ft The Freeze Force and “Boogie Down Bronx.” And this is not to say that artists didn’t put out more music (or even had music before the songs we loved), it’s just to say that there were no expectations.
That said, because we may have only known artists for one song, like the Aleem Brothers/Captain Rock “Cosmic Blast,” those songs held a serious place in our memory. We remembered when they came out, where we were when we first heard the songs, and the order they were recorded on our cassettes (i.e. the songs before and after them). “Cosmic Blast” came out around mid-October if I recall correctly, and I had Force MDs “Tears” after it…it was the first song on the tape.
Part of what led to this acceptance of artists coming and going was the fact that we rarely saw them. Everyone wasn’t able to throw money into making videos back then and even if they did there were few outlets for them.
As more artists recorded albums, we started at least hoping for another song from the artist…at least we did with a young artist who took the template of “It’s Yours” and ran with it. Of course we’re talking about LL Cool J.
We never anticipated an artist before and it was a long year between “I Need a Beat” and the next single, “Radio.” Especially in our young lives. Between “I Need a Beat” and “Radio” my older brother, Ade and I had left New Jersey, lived in K-Town, Germany, and moved back to Park Hill, Denver where we tried to sell everyone on this LL dude that no one had ever heard of…until “Krush Groove.”
Again, you have to remember…we ain’t know what these people looked like so when people saw this…
…they were blown away from the second LL said, “Box!”
His debut album, “Radio” would come out a month later…you know the one with LL in those Jordan 1s long before that was a thing. LL changed the game, he was: the first solo artist superstar, the first rapper with a bonafide love song on an album, and the first rapper that anyone EXPECTED to have a follow up, sophomore album.
Universally though, we were still okay with an artist only dropping a song and POOF disappearing. Recorded rap was still in its infancy and the single still dominated. Over the next three years all of that would change.
As we talked about in Video Birthed the Rap Star, prior to music videos, rap was not a mass market music. It was very regional and not uncommon for an artist to have a hit in their market but be practically unknown outside of their hometown. Videos changed that. Once people could see the artist that they were listening to the music became intimate and personal. People identified with their favorite artists and wanted to see and hear more about them.
Because of this, the late 80s spawned a slew of rap stars…and not just from New York, either. Sir Mix A Lot (Seattle), The D.O.C. (Dallas), NWA (Compton), Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince (Philly), 2 Live Crew (Miami) are just a few of the artists that benefitted from the brave new world of music videos and the subsequent shows that followed.
Again, we could remember when most of these artists debuted, their lead off singles, all of that. It was a big deal watching the rap industry grow the way that it was. But as this growth occurred, it became harder to keep up with all the emerging rappers. The magazines helped with that.
By the time the 90s rolled around, it was damn near impossible to keep up with all of the rap acts that were coming out. As we talked about here, The Source Magazine was our Bible for this very reason alone.
The fact that they featured artists outside of the Tri-State area helped tremendously…not that that didn’t piss off many o’ New York-centric fan. They would write angry letters any time that someone that they didn’t approve of appeared on the cover. If you’re from that era, you’ll recall the backlash to the TLC isssue.
With so many artists, not everyone could make a big splash. Flipping through an old Source Magazine now is crazy. There are soooooo many acts that I barely remember. Some made a mark then. Others did not. It took a lot to be noticed in a time where act after act was putting out their best music.
Videos became more extravagant as did the artists’ taste. Rap began to crossover and overthrow every other genre on it’s way to being America’s most popular music. Entrepreneurs like Master P took full advantage of this environment by dropping album after album of his and his artists’ music accompanied by ads to match. Some magazine issues had as many as 20 full page No Limit ads.
I doubt anyone can name all of the acts on No Limit.
As we entered into the new millennium the market was flooded with rap music from every region, all vying for a few spots on the new corporate playlists. Make it into those rotations, chances are, you’d become nationally known. But a market that is controlled by advertising is only as good as the last season of ad space bought. If listeners turned away, that translated into the possibility of less ads.
The music was no longer viewed as “art” (not that it ever truly was…but even less so at the beginning of this era) and became viewed as “content.” “Content” is interchangeable. If one artists sounds like another but the public likes it, then it will continue to play. It’s business.
And, although there were breakout hits, what exactly was being sold? Now, this isn’t a criticism against any artist but more a critique of the world that they released their music in.
So let’s get back to our questions.
By the time 2006 had rolled around, Jazze Pha had been in the business for 16 years already. Signed to Epic in 1990 as a rapper, it took some years before he became the omnipresent, super producer that we knew him as in the early to mid aughts. And when I say omnipresent, short of Allah, nothing and no one was everywhere like he was.
And, I’m sure Jazze Pha is still in the industry in one form or another but we hear Zaytoven and Metro Boomin’s names now where we once heard his and I’m not even sure if anyone under 25 knows who Jazze is…
We discussed Rap trends with Seasons Change & So Do Rap Trends and it’s something important to remember now.
As long as there’s been Black people in America making music, our music has been evolving. An era may seem to last FOREVER but in reality, we rarely stay with any style or sub-genre more than five years. The average ear may not always be able to distinguish the changes as they occur but Black music is always changing. Whether it’s for the better or not is up for debate.
Long before the RIAA was giving albums platinum status off of streams and digital downloads, we’re talking back before the iPhone, Dem Franchize Boyz made the New York Times. The article, then, spoke of the group as a flop but there’s this interesting tidbit.
D4L is setting sales records. Last week, the group sold 175,000 digital copies of “Laffy Taffy.” That figure doesn’t just set a digital-download record, it smashes the old one: the previous record-holder was Kanye West, who sold 80,500 digital copies of his hit “Gold Digger” one week last fall. D4L has now sold more than twice as many digital downloads as CD’s. Kelefa Sanneh
My Harvard educated brother then goes on to say that, “On the hip-hop prestige scale, goofy dance songs like “Laffy Taffy” don’t rate very high.” Well, I wish he had of informed them kids that I was catching MARTA with where flailing “Poole Palace” arms would appear in front of your face, fingers snapping and all. “Snap Music,” as it came to be called, was large…for a moment. Some claim that it had been developing since 2000. I’on’t know about that. All I know is circumstance had me back in Georgia the Fall of ’05 and from then until I left in ’06, “Snap Music” ruled the radio waves…and car systems.
And, while that same article makes comparisons between Dem Franchize Boyz, T.I., and Young Jeezy, they all come out of the same environment — Bankhead…and there’s nothing “goofy” about Bankhead.
People all over America loved “Snap Music”…and then, like “crunk” before it, “Snap” was gone.
The moral of the story is — if you’re a rapper, study the history of the genre…hell, study Black folks, because the likelihood of you having a career in rap, like a Jay Z or even a J Cole is quite slim. So be wise, save your money, and be sure never to have a line that speaks to the longevity of another’s career because that rapper with the short-lived career is likely your own. Ask Craig Mack.
Now pass your papers…well…leave your answers in the comments. Peace.
